Batavia City Council Member Robert Bialkowski took a swipe at the state governor Monday night as he voted “yes” to setting a public hearing on Feb. 24 to override the property tax cap.
“I’d like to thank Governor Cuomo and his cronies for doing this to us,” Bialkowski said, referring to a proposed state budget that includes revenue generated by video lottery terminals at Batavia Downs Gaming – money that has always gone to municipalities, such as the City of Batavia, that host VLT gaming.
City leaders are scrambling to come up with ways to plug the gap caused by the potential loss of more than $440,000. A recommendation from City Manager to cut expenses and raise taxes in the 2020-21 budget (see Monday’s stories in The Batavian) currently is on the table.
Discussion during last night’s Special Conference Meeting centered on Moore’s recommendation and the governor’s action that, according to City Council President Eugene Jankowski, came as a surprise.
“Three years ago, we started using it (VLT money). “We were going to use it to offset taxes again this year and it got pulled from us without any advance warning,” Jankowski said.
He said that he hoped that pressure from state senators and assembly members would be able to change the governor’s mind about the VLT funds, but if not, thought the city would be in a better position to budget properly in 2021-22.
Moore said the loss of the VLT money is “fairly substantial” and credited the City’s department heads with delivering ways to cut expenses.
He warned against using unallocated cash tied to the workers’ compensation fund.
“We’ve got to be careful with that,” he said. “There’s a strong determination on my part … I needed to listen to them (staff) and to the data. We can not use those funds. They need to be there in case of claims, which could be $100,00, $200,000 or $500,000 in a single shot, and they come unexpected.”
Jankowski emphasized that Monday’s vote was just to schedule the public hearing – not to override the tax cap at this juncture.
He also made it a point to explain that the City was holding back on hiring an employee to handle additional paperwork caused by the state’s bail reform and discovery law changes and an additional school resource officer.
“We have no choice other than to take it out of reserves … and that is not a good idea,” he said.
On another front, Council members heard from Richard Unlauf, a city resident, who sought approval from the board to construct a skate park in the City and “hopefully within a City park.”
Umlauf said he has been in touch with the Tony Hawk Foundation and Ralph C. Wilson Foundation, which offer grants – one for $250,000 (a matching dollar-for-dollar grant) and another for ecological studies in the amount of $50,000.
“It’s a project that is close to me as I am one of the kids that benefitted from the previous park,” Umlauf said. “It kept me free and clear (of trouble).”
Umlauf volunteered to head a committee to look into such a project, adding that several residents have reached out to him to express their interest.
In response, Council Member Paul Viele asked about the liability to the City. Jankowski called for more information and Kathleen Briggs wanted to know more about the grant possibilities.
Moore said a skate park brings a number of different factors into play as far as insurance is concerned and was backed by City Attorney George Van Nest, who said that a skate park could add “different layers” to the insurability process.
“You need to make sure there is ample insurance and analyze the risk and cost associated with taking that on,” he said.
Council Member Rose Mary Christian suggested that Umlauf continue with his efforts and report back to Council next month.
On another matter, Moore reported that a committee formed to look into the deer overpopulation problem in the City has met twice and is looking at eight different areas or zones.
“They are looking at which ones to tackle first … to get the best bang for the buck – or probably the doe at this point,” he said, pun intended.
